Plex is joining Microsoft's own media player on Xbox One

But it's locked behind a paywall

Plex has become the go-to media app for home theaters, and now the service is launching a native Xbox One app on October 7.

That's great news for people with lots of digital video files, but there's a catch: use of the app will be reserved for the service's premium "Plex Pass" subscribers.

Plex Pass subscriptions cost $5 (about £3, AU$5.70) a month, $40 (about £25, AU$45) a year, or $150 (about £93, AU$170) for a lifetime, and in addition to cloud support and other features they'll now include use the Xbox One app.

Microsoft launched its own media player app on Xbox One recently, though compared to Plex it's still lacking numerous features and polish.

Flex your Plex

The service has features similar to Netflix and other streaming services, including recommendations and the ability to remember your last position when you stopped watching something, but it uses your own digital files.

It's effortless to use on a variety of platforms, and the Xbox One app looks like it will fit in nicely.

It's a shame about the paywall, but it may not last long - The Verge says it will be available to non-subscribers for $5 at some point later on.

In addition there's an Xbox 360 Plex app in the works for an unspecified time.